State of Jefferson: Board votes for separation

Wednesday

Sep 4, 2013 at 10:38 AM

Kevin Dickinson

Tuesday's Siskiyou County Board of Supervisors' meeting was packed with citizens supporting a declaration aimed at seceding Siskiyou County from California to form a separate State of Jefferson. Continuing from the Aug. 13 meeting, this second round of discussions had proponents standing, sitting and kneeling in the boardroom only to overflow into the courthouse halls to hear whether the board would vote to approve "the declaration and authorize the vice chair to sign and to request that our state assemblyman and state senator read the declaration into their respective legislative record on behalf of Siskiyou County," as stated by Supervisor Marcia Armstrong.The board approved the declaration and subsequent action with four board members voting in favor to one voting in opposition.The declaration cites a lack of representation for rural and frontier counties, aggressive regulation and reinterpretation of long-established laws, that California is unmanageable in its present state and 45 historical efforts to divide the state by 1998 among its reasons for the split. It then states the board of supervisors' request to have the "California State Legislature approve the withdrawal from the state of California."Supporters were again provided the opportunity to speak toward the declaration with 17 citizens stepping forward to do so. Among them were: Richard Gierak, Tom Pease, Richard Marshall, Elizabeth Bradley, Nelson Harding, Tom Mohler, Anne Wollet, Scott Murphy, and Kayla Brown, of Shasta County."We realize it is not a resolution; it is not an ordinance," Liz Bowen said. "We do appreciate the county board of supervisors knowing that our economy is really poor here. We're having a terrible time for a lot of reasons, and the biggest reason is over regulating.""Statehood is the only way things will truly change," said Mark Baird, president of Scott Valley Protect Our Water. "It's going to be hard, but we have to try to do this." He added that there is a need for a local government that understands Siskiyou County issues.After the vote, Baird spoke briefly on funding the possible infant state. He pointed out there would be a lull in finances after the initial transition but said a petition to congress for a loan might provide bridge funding. "I could live with potholes if I was free," Baird said.Gierak called California's state government the "most atrocious and egregious" example of over-regulatory attacks, citing the coho salmon recovery as an example.Looking back on days past, Pease noted how Siskiyou County was once a paradise. "Pick a town; they were all wonderful," Pease said, calling today's Siskiyou County an "island controlled by a foreign government." He added local government officials were "hamstrung to start with" and "doing the best they can with a bad product."Laun Curry, chairperson of the Jefferson Committee for Shasta County, and Erin Ryan, representative for Congressperson Doug La Malfa, also took the opportunity to address the board and those present.Curry read from the Rev. William John Henry Boetcker's famous maxims, sometimes called the American Charter or the Industrial Decalogue, which begins with, "'You cannot bring about prosperity by discouraging thrift.'"Ryan was unable to reach La Malfa for a statement, but speaking for herself and her staff, she said, "We're in."The board then spoke about the declaration and their reasons for voting for or against it.Armstrong discussed what she called the "five r's" as her reason for supporting the declaration. Those were regulation (way too much of it), restrictions on rights (Second Amendment challenges), representation (too large of a state and unelected officials), regionalism (zoning and in-planning taken away from local government), and restoration of limited government. She added, "Someone asked me, 'Aren't you afraid that if your people are self-governing they're going to have to step up to the plate and serve on local boards?' Well, we do have a problem with people stepping up and serving on local boards, so keep that in mind next time you see an ad."Supervisor Brandon Criss provided several examples for his support for the declaration, such as Sacramento's use of 401 Water Quality Certifications to not re-license the Klamath River dams and that the past two governors have never bothered to visit Siskiyou County."I think it would be great for future supervisors and county staff to run the county and serve the people, not spend multitudes of time fighting our own state government so our environment, economy, citizens and families can succeed," Criss said.Supervisor Grace Bennett and Supervisor Michael Kobseff also voted in favor of the declaration. Bennett called the decision one of the most difficult to come before the board and noted the challenge the separation would pose in the form of taking care of the people, including providing tools, education and funding."I'm hoping we have the determination, and everyone doesn't just go home and expect someone else to do it," said Bennett. "We need everybody working together."Kobseff said he had not had one contact opposed to the issue. "People are so thoroughly disgusted with the way government is representing what it calls the People anymore," he said.Citing the transgender bathroom bill as an example, Kobseff asked, "Are these guys nuts down there? What are they thinking when they are going to expose our children and grandchildren to something that is foreign to the rest of us, but something like that can come through, and they tout it as legislation."Supervisor Ed Valenzuela, the board's only no vote, went last to provide the reasoning for his vote. He asked how many among the assembled were from Mount Shasta, a question receiving no response. "Ultimately, I'm not going to be for this," said Valenzuela. "Knowing what it's like to be a minority, I know the value of having to work from the other side without the numbers and without the support. "I signed on to work within the system that I know. I don't like it or agree with it all the time. By the same token, I did sign on for that, and I will continue to do so."The declaration in its entirety is available to read on the board of supervisors' website at www.co.siskiyou.ca.us/BOS/DOCS/agenda/2013/Questys/PublishedMeetings.htm. The text is hyperlinked to the Sept. 3 agenda.